I believe that Paul Naschy horror films are generally good because Paul himself was a big fan of horror. Plus, it helps that he scripted a lot of his own films, so what you usually get is the old classic monster movies updated to the seventies with added gore and nudity, and very little waffle. Or, you could say he takes the Hammer template and dispenses with the boring bits. One of those two.
I guess in a normal world the fact that Paul blacks up for this film would be offensive, but if it was a genuine Indian person playing the role, it would be Paul Naschy! It's still much less offensive that Peter Sellers doing it, as Paul isn't sending up the Indian race at all, but merely making some sort of statement about how white folks will follow anyone claiming to be a guru, even if they also are possibly Voodoo zombie masters at the same time. Now that I've written that he's possibly playing an Indian Voodoo Guru, I think there might not be any social commentary there at all. I'm getting dizzy thinking about it.
Anyway, one particular possible follower for Paul's Krishna character is Elvira, who is looking for some spiritual guidance. Her pal Yorgen (I can't remember his name) is very sceptical about it all, even following a demonstration when Krishna's assistant (who is jealous of Elvira) starts stabbing Krishna in the back without subsequence. At the same time, someone in London is draining blood from men, killing women, and bringing them back to life as zombies. When someone in a mask breaks into Elvira's house and kills her father and cousin, she runs off to the countryside to live with Krishna, which might not be the best idea. Who else is wearing that mask and a cloak with a build like that - Sandy Toksvig?
This is all heading in the direction you'd expect but then Paul does throw in a couple of curveballs that take things off in different directions. What I really could have done without is the blatant beheading of a chicken for voodoo purposes. Not cool, Paul, not cool. This also happened in Boris Karloff film The Snake People, which has a similar voodoo plot. However, the Satan nightmare sequence was great! As were the Hi-de-hi 'you have been watching' style end credits, so we'll call it a draw.
No point in telling anyone if this is good or bad. If you're going to watch a Paul Naschy film, you'll know what to expect anyway. Please note that the zombies here are pasty-faced women wearing black robes, and not rotting corpses.
I guess in a normal world the fact that Paul blacks up for this film would be offensive, but if it was a genuine Indian person playing the role, it would be Paul Naschy! It's still much less offensive that Peter Sellers doing it, as Paul isn't sending up the Indian race at all, but merely making some sort of statement about how white folks will follow anyone claiming to be a guru, even if they also are possibly Voodoo zombie masters at the same time. Now that I've written that he's possibly playing an Indian Voodoo Guru, I think there might not be any social commentary there at all. I'm getting dizzy thinking about it.
Anyway, one particular possible follower for Paul's Krishna character is Elvira, who is looking for some spiritual guidance. Her pal Yorgen (I can't remember his name) is very sceptical about it all, even following a demonstration when Krishna's assistant (who is jealous of Elvira) starts stabbing Krishna in the back without subsequence. At the same time, someone in London is draining blood from men, killing women, and bringing them back to life as zombies. When someone in a mask breaks into Elvira's house and kills her father and cousin, she runs off to the countryside to live with Krishna, which might not be the best idea. Who else is wearing that mask and a cloak with a build like that - Sandy Toksvig?
This is all heading in the direction you'd expect but then Paul does throw in a couple of curveballs that take things off in different directions. What I really could have done without is the blatant beheading of a chicken for voodoo purposes. Not cool, Paul, not cool. This also happened in Boris Karloff film The Snake People, which has a similar voodoo plot. However, the Satan nightmare sequence was great! As were the Hi-de-hi 'you have been watching' style end credits, so we'll call it a draw.
No point in telling anyone if this is good or bad. If you're going to watch a Paul Naschy film, you'll know what to expect anyway. Please note that the zombies here are pasty-faced women wearing black robes, and not rotting corpses.